Ackerley, a distinguished British man of letters, hardly thought of himself as a dog lover when, well into middle age, he came to adopt Tulip, a beautiful, yet intolerable 18-month-old German shepherd. To his surprise, she turned out to be the love of his life, the "ideal friend" he had been searching for in vain for so many years. In vivid and sometimes startling detail, the film reveals Tulip's sassy, often erratic behavior (and very canine tastes) and Ackerley's fumbling but determined efforts to ensure an existence of perfect happiness for her.

A profound and subtle mediation on the strangeness that lies at the heart of all relationships, My Dog Tulip was written, directed, and animated by award-winning filmmakers Paul and Sandra Fierlinger and is the first animated feature ever to be entirely hand drawn and painted utilizing paperless computer technology. (83 mins., 35mm)